It is a British propensity of going from feasting to frugality often in the same week, where perhaps an expensive meal or two was had over the weekend with less expensive foods consumed during the week. This was such a problem in the middle of the 1800’s that booklets were written to help the middle-class housewife who previously had often had staff to help cook and clean. Staff were possibly more adept at producing meals within budget but as housewives ran the whole household now work weary husbands were coming home to banquets one night and a thin soup the next. Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management literally took off such was the need to understand the basics.

But once you do understand the basics then how you plan your budget becomes a masterpiece within itself. Personally I’m not a restaurant dweller, I could wax lyrical about why I’m not, but the sum part of it is, been there, done that. As I get older, I just can’t be bothered to play the game, eating two or three courses that I’m not finding interesting, often on uncomfortable seating, (but that might be a me problem!) listening to the clatter of other people eating (were restaurants this loud when we were younger?) and to pay for the privilege of doing so. I’d much rather just go down the pub and have a few drinks with friends to catch up on the gossip and banter.

So these days I’ve taken to feasting and frugality in an ingredient household way. The frugality part is really easy with having an allotment, munching on corn on the cobs, fresh roasted tomatoes on home made garlic bread, minestrone soups and roasted pumpkins combined with various salads is never going to be a hardship. Combine it with a little good cheese and it becomes a hearty supper. The feasting is in the developmental, I’ve given myself permission to do this stage. It’s something hubby and I used to do and it is time to return to that. So in the last few weeks I’ve enjoyed the odd fillet steak with home made chips, half a dozen oysters with a homemade mignonette sauce, caviar and cream cheese with a few home made blini’s, crab and smoked salmon on wafer thin crackers to name but a few. I’m eyeing up the lobster tails, it would be much more fun to buy live lobsters but I’d have to go to the next city for that and the scallops looked most interesting the other day. Heading into deeper territory of the shell fish season always makes me happier.

So in the spirit of frugality but I’m pretty sure it was feasting I made a homegrown apple pie with a 50/50 mix of cookers and eaters, heavy on the butter and cinnamon, a pure butter pastry with the fragrance of lemon. It was lush. Happy autumn cooking and eating everyone.